Haridwar : A City of Love

Well , whenever we talk about Hindu religion some facts strike in our mind like the oldest religion of the world , saffron cloth wearing , old temples , Sanskrit chants , worshiping on the bank of river , numerous deities and gods etc.  India is such a vast country and Hinduism is spread all over the sub continent , although India is a secular nation where all religion exists under the same sky but here in this blog I am talking specifically about the Hinduism and place where you can truly find the assent of real Hinduism i.e. Haridwar . 

Situated on the Himalayan belt in the south west of Uttrakhand state joining borders with Uttar Pardesh state and becoming the first plane city after the mountains of Himalayas.

(Image Source : Google )

The word " Haridwar " is made up of two words i.e. " Hari " mean god 'Shiva' and " Dwar " means 'entrance' which makes up the ' Entrance of god Shiva ' , " Hari - Dwar " . Haridwar is among the oldest city in the world dated back to 1700 BCE (approx) as the terra cotta archaeological findings have proved . Mahabharata also mentions Haridwar at some episodes and Haridwar has witnessed many rulers on her land like the Mauryan's ( 325 - 185 BCE ) followed by Kushan Empire ( 1st - 3rd century BCE ) and it goes on . Haridwar came under the Mughals in the medieval history during 12th century and then under British as United Province . This city carries a rich and most vibrant history where all the religious leaders of every religion stepped on the soil of Haridwar whether it was Guru Nanak , Kabir and all Hindu gods . 

( Image source : Google )

One of the most striking feature of this city is it's sacred river " Ganga " it's the longest river in India flowing from the Himalayan mountains  glaciers into two parts of rivers i.e. Alaknanda and Bhagrathi and they make a confluence in Devprayag ( a small town in mountains of Garhwal ) and forms a sacred river " Ganga " . 

( Confluence of river Ganga , where Alaknanda and Bhagrathi mixes in Devprayag)

Haridwar is considered as the gateway to river Ganga to the whole world . This river Ganga is worshiped  in Hindu religion and most striking feature you will observe is that it's the cleanest form of water forming naturally and it's the most cleanest river of India. It is drinkable without any risk and in fact this river contains some minerals and particles which work as cure for skin diseases . This river gives people so much that is why it is worshiped. People from all over the world comes to worship and visit to river Ganga . Hindu's also take away a can filled with Ganga Jal ( Ganga Water ) to their homes whenever they visit to Haridwar because that sacred water is used in their home worshiping and in temples. 

When Ganga was brought to Haridwar, then all the Gods asked: ’We wash all sins, but who will wash us?’ Ganga said this to Lord Vishnu: ’Lord Vishnu Bhagwan, tell us, what should we do?’ Then the Lord said: ‘As many sadhus and saints are living in this world, every time they will bathe in Ganga, all your sins will be washed away [automatically].

Now we'll talk about the another striking feature of Haridwar.

(Image Source : Google )

Another feature for which Haridwar is known for it's magnificent alluring temples , although temples are located in every corner of Haridwar but still there are few sacred temples which had their great historical significance like .

• Har Ki Pauri Temple - Built on the banks of river Ganga , constructed by king Vikramaditaya in 1st century BCE
• Chandi Devi Temple - Here it is believed that some demons kings were killed by goddess Chandi , after which it was named as Chandi Devi. It is known that it was built in 8th century AD 
•  Mansa Devi Temple - Means goddess who fulfill desires and this temple is built on the mountain.
•  Maya Devi Temple - Built in 11th century and it is believed that few parts of heart and naval fall down here of Goddess Sati.
• Daksheswara Mahadev Temple - It's the place where goddess Sati self immolated her in Ygana Kund .

Yet , there are many other famous temples in Haridwar but I mentioned those only who had historical significance and are most popular . Any visitor to this city will automatically observe the smell of worship and Hinduism of this place. Tourist visits Haridwar from all over the globe visits to study the true culture of Hinduism and experience the tradition of thousands of year followed till now on the soil of Haridwar. 

You can easily reach to Haridwar by any means of transportation :

• Railways - Haridwar has it's own junction , so numerous trains are available to Haridwar from any major railway station of north India.
• Roadways - There are regular buses and taxis to Haridwar from any major town or city of North India and connectivity is quite fine in North India to Haridwar.
• Airways - There is an airport in Dehradun , Jolly Grant Airport. It's a domestic airport and you can easily get a flight from New Delhi to Dehradun . From airport you can easily hail the taxi to Haridwar and it's hour and half drive from airport to Haridwar.

I have only mentioned the basic and most popular qualities of this city for which it is known for and I found it is enough to write but I can write more about this city like it's economy , education , political stability etc. If you are interested so do let me know in comment section. And if you have any other query about this city , so feel free to comment and ask.

Location - Haridwar, Uttarakhand 📍 



Hope you enjoyed my blog and please do subscribe :)
Thank you